notny41

Looking for advice from anyone who has replaced their motor mounts in a 944 Turbo.

I get a little extra vibration when I start the car. I figure it is my motor mounts. Mine is a 1986. I'd like to replace them, but I'm wondering how much of a pain in the a$$ it is.

The parts themselves look harmless enough and are fairly inexpensive.

I have done quite a bit of maintenance to cars in the past (including having done timing belt on the old 951 a couple of times). Can anyone tell me compared to doing the timing belt and balance shaft belt, how does replacing motor mounts compare to the timing belt job?

Also wondering what would it cost approximately to have a shop replace the motor mounts?

Thanks

divil

I found it tricky the first time. You have to support the engine (you can buy a support bar in Harbor Freight for this). Then you loosen the 4 crossmember bolts and lower the crossmember. You can do this with the control arms still attached but you might have to loosen the steering rack mounts a bit to get enough movement. The engine mount fastners themselves are not too hard to reach. The lower nuts are easy (some people say you have to remove the control arms from the crossmember, but you don't). The 2 small upper ones are a little trickier but doable. Make sure you have a nice small 1/4" socket wrench with a short handle and a flex socket (I think it's 10mm)

What I found was that I had to lower the whole crossmember as low as the bolts would go, then remove the bolts completely from one side. Then pry that side down and pop the engine mount out. The crossmember will rotate around the steering joint so it needs to be lowed at both ends.

When you're installing the new mounts, there's a lip on the top that fits into a little overhanging piece of the crossmember. Therefore the mount has to be compressed slightly and pulled outwards towards the side of the car. What I did was loop a piece of string around it, then compress it from the top with a pry bar and use the string to pull it into place. Obviously you need to have the crossmember bolts started before you do that.

The final challenge is getting the bolt holes lined up with the metal engine stands. This is tricky and you may have to experiment with raising the engine a little more or less on one side, or pushing it this way or that with a pry bar. Just keep the lower nut loose on the engine mount until the upper 2 are both in place.

audisport

http://www.clarks-garage.com/shop-manual/eng-12.htm

notny41

Compared to doing timing belt - harder or less difficult?

divil

There isn't really a definitive answer to that. Harder in what sense? It's physically harder for sure. You'll be under the car prying and wrestling with things. On the other hand it's a lot simpler. You don't need any great precision or attention to detail of the kind needed to change the timing belt. They're 2 completely different kinds of work.

notny41

Gotcha - thanks! I've seen a lot of people jack the engine up from the oilpan using a 2x4 between the oilpan and jack. ok, or not ok to do?

87944turbo

I think I did something similar when I did mine. You have to be careful of course, wouldn't take a lot of force to crack a pan. From the top is best obviously, but can understand that it might not be an option.

This item John was referring to is good if you don't have access to an engine lift. https://www.harborfreight.com/1000-l...bar-96524.html

I have seen people build these supports out of wood too, so that is a potential solution as well. 4x4 post is pretty cheap and would do the job.

MAGK944

superloaf

The hardest part I found was struggling with the lip that divil mentions in the first post. It's tricky getting it where it needs to go and getting the crossmember back. Pay attention to how the old mount fits. I did mine while doing the oil pan gasket; my mounts were completely destroyed but I had no noticeable symptoms before disassembling and seeing the shape they were in. Then once the new ones were in and the car was running, I never noticed a difference or any reduction in vibration, although my car has a louder exhaust and plenty of stiff suspension noises.

notny41

Do the motor mounts come out from the underneath side or do you take them out from the top?

gruhsy

From underneath once you clear the stud on the bottom of the mount.

jerome951

Few hints:
Buy the factory mounts. This isn't a job you want to do too frequently, and cheap aftermarket mounts seem to not last very long
I've raised my engine a few times by the pan. Not optimal, but no issues for me. You can also support the engine by placing a block of wood between the torque tube and body bracket (that crosses under the tube), just behind the bellhousing, once you get it lifted
A flex-head, ratcheting box end wrench was a big help

notny41

Thanks Jerome - that gives me hope. I have a set of those flex/ratchet box wrenches. I also recently bought a set of crow-foot wrenches in metric. So are you saying you'd stay away from the Hamburg-Technic motor mounts in favor of original Porsche mounts? The Hamburg-Technic are hydraulic.

MAGK944

notny41

Excellent - thanks - recommendations on where to get the Porsche motor mounts?